Stusser Does Couric

Michael Stusser is everywhere. Just last week the Seattle-based writer was on the cover of Seattle Weekly, describing his recent foray into CrossFit hell. And yesterday he appeared on the Katie Couric show to discuss the digital blackout campaign and his recent documentary film, Sleeping with Siri, which was inspired by a November, 2012 cover story for Seattle Weekly. The film, made with the help of director Marty Riemer and director of photography Mark Goodnow, has been accepted and screened at a number of notable film festivals, includingthe Big Easy International Film Festival . Like the Seattle Weekly story, the film focuses on Stusser’s first-person dive into the excesses of technology that surround us - gorging on things like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and text messaging.

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“Editing a written piece and putting together a film are peas in a pod: they’re both hell,” Stusser told Seattle Weekly in February of the cinematic endeavor. “There are so many ways you can take a story, and it comes down to choices, which can drive you crazy. Should we highlight this fact? Is there a better way to show this? Do we need more research? Where’s hair and make-up, dammit!?

So what was the experience of appearing on the Katie Couric show like? Stusser says he was most surprised by how bright the talk show host is.

“Remember she’s the one who nailed Sarah Palin. Cute but deadly,” says Stusser of Couric. “We had a good rapport. The live taping was 18 minutes long… And they had to cut it down to about six. Some of the great bits got left on the cutting room floor… I had some fun stuff about going on a digital date and using the phone APP as a DUI tester. I guess that means there’s room for me to say tell those stories on future appearances.”

UPDATE: The post originally indicated Sleeping with Siri had been screened at SIFF. It didn't. The post has been corrected to reflect this.